title: Health-related quality of life in dialysis patients with constipation: a cross-sectional study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate differences in the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) between patients with constipation receiving hemodialysis (HD) and those receiving peritoneal dialysis (PD).
  
  
  METHODS
  In this cross-sectional study, 605 dialysis patients (478 HD cases and 127 PD cases; all patients were older than 18 years) from our hospital were included. A questionnaire was used to evaluate their constipation statuses. The effect of constipation on HRQoL was assessed, using the Chinese version of the 12-item short-form (SF-12) general health survey. Karnofsky score, sociodemographic, and clinical data were also collected. We performed multiple logistic regression analysis to define independent risk factors for constipation and impaired HRQoL.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 605 participants (326 men [53.9%] and 279 women [46.1%]) were surveyed. The incidence of constipation was 71.7% in HD patients and 14.2% in PD patients. Dialysis patients with constipation had significantly lower mean SF-12 Physical Component Summary scale and Mental Component Summary scale scores than the nonconstipation group (P < 0.05), whereas HD patients had better SF-12 Physical Component Summary and Mental Component Summary scores than PD patients (P < 0.05). When we performed multivariate logistic regression analysis, dialysis modality, diabetes, and the number of constipation-related medications were three independent risk factors associated with constipation. As for impaired HRQoL in the constipated dialysis population, dialysis modality was found to be another independent risk factor in addition to age and diabetes.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  PD patients with constipation had worse HRQoL than HD control participants. We should pay more attention to the patients with constipation receiving PD, as peritonitis caused by constipation was associated with a higher mortality.
authors.affiliation: Division of Nephrology, School of Medicine, Ningbo Urology and Nephrology Hospital, Ningbo University, Ningbo, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Jisheng
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Congyang
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Yanli
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Fangyuan
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.forename: Qiang
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Yao
authors.forename: Jiaqi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Qian
authors.forename: Beiyan
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bao
authors.forename: Xuping
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Yao
keywords: SF-12; constipation; dialysis; health-related quality of life